Nov. 11, 2008 — Greeting the crowd at Franklin D. Roosevelt V.I. Veterans Memorial Park Tuesday afternoon, Gov. John deJongh Jr. said, "There is something different about today …."
And indeed there was. The governor articulated the mood and energy of the crowd.
"This is a special day," he said, "because we have a new president in 2009. It will be very different than before. We are three islands with a population of 120,000 who can't vote, but we feel the excitement and the hope. This individual would have us see community above self. Yes, we can."
The crowd — tiny tots on laps, teenagers in ROTC uniforms, seasoned veterans of wars dating back to World War II, several folk, young and old, in Barack Obama T-shirts and hats — was as one with the governor. The feeling of camaraderie was almost tangible.
Lila Juul and Tony Gehringer moved to St. Thomas in April. They sat quietly listening to the governor's every word.
"I served in the Navy in WWII, Korea and Vietnam," Tony Gehringer said. "I was first here in '48. We've lived all over, but now we've settled here."
His wife added, "We love this beautiful island, and what a wonderful little parade. Those lovely children holding the flag."
Nearby the Bonelli family, part of the island for generations, seemed to share the same happiness. Carmen Wheatley, who served eight years in the National Guard, sat bouncing her 18-month-old daughter, Cinique Bonelli. The family also includes 15-year-old ROTC member Decio Bonelli.
Keynote speaker Robert R. Rigsby, associate judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, held the audience in his hand as he spoke intimately of the territory as though he had been born here.
He spoke of friends Lt. General Samuel Ebbesen — the first Virgin Islander to hold that rank — and Adjutant General Renaldo Rivera. The judge's pedigree is a mile long, but he didn't mention that. He spoke of his father, from whom he learned everything. He spoke of his duty in the U.S. Army, which he said meant more to him than becoming a judge, and he spoke about children, about growing up. Rigsby used words any older Virgin Islander will immediately say about growing up.
"When I was growing up," he said, "we were part of the neighborhood. If I did something wrong, my folks would know it before I got home from school."
American Legion members abounded, some standing erect, some on canes, but all sharing in the excitement of the day. Former Customs agent Albert Mercer, a U.S. Army veteran and 17-year V.I. National Guard member, agreed soundly with Rigsby, and more.
"Parents must teach their kids what it means to bring kids out to these memorials so they know about the world," he said. "When I was gone, my daughter knew every second where I was in the world. We must teach them why we are gone, what we are fighting for. All they know is when are we coming back, not why we were gone."
Speaking of the territory's relatively small community, deJongh said, "They say there is six degrees of separation. In the Virgin Islands, it's one half a degree of separation. If I don't know you, I know your brother, your aunt …. When you put on your uniform and leave and don't come back, I feel it the way your family would."
The program included remarks by Delegate Donna M. Christensen; Morris Moorehead, director of Veterans Affairs; and Harry A. Daniel, assistant director of Veterans Affairs. They spoke before five granite pillars that frame the southern tip of the park, under the crown of an eternal flame, each bearing the name of V.I. soldiers killed in battles ranging from World War II to Operation Iraqi Freedom. Each pillar represents a branch of the armed forces, including the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Air Force.
Veteran newsman Lee Carle commented on the the substantial turnout for Tuesday's Veterans Day event.
"In years past it used to be about 10, and two of those were press," he said with a laugh.
Speaking after the ceremony, Rigsby spoke of another reason the territory is special.
"My wife, Anna (Judge Anna Blackburne Rigsby), and I honeymooned here in 1992," the judge said. He said he was "proud to be asked to speak today." DeJongh asked him earlier his year when he was here for a meeting of the Black Bar Association.
Rigsby had high words of praise for the V.I. parade.
"I have never seen such a parade," he said. "It is the best I've ever seen. The youngsters were so proud, so organized."
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